Lesson Overview This lesson will address the cell theory that was introduced in lesson 2 in more detail. It will also go into the characteristics of life.
Objectives
Interpret the meaning of the cell theory.
Identify the characteristics of an living organism
Determine whether something is living or nonliving with evidence
Opening There will be a slideshow of various cells playing on the screen and a question on the board, “Define what it means to be alive” I will ask them to take 5-10 min to write a response to this question. At this point I will take attendance and collect homework. I will then collect their responses and ask them some things they came up with. This warm up exercise is designed to get them thinking about the topic and also to activate prior knowledge of what they know of what is alive. Answers will be recorded on the board. I will ask them about the cell theory and what are the parts that were discussed in the video yesterday. I will write it on the board and ask how this theory pertains to life. The discussion will proceed to address what determines if something is alive or not? At what point is something not alive anymore? Again, responses will be written on the board.
Learning Activities The students will pair off and each be given a copy of the short story “Is Sammy Alive”. They will be instructed to read the story and discuss with their partner if they think Sammy is alive at the end of the story. If they think he is, explain. If they feel he is not alive anymore, explain why and where in the story was Sammy no longer living and why. Once they have discussed the story whether or not they agree with each other they will write up what they think and why. This will be collected.
Closing After the students have finished up with this activity I will ask each group to briefly discuss their findings and their reasoning. I will then ask them based on what they have learned about the cell, what they know about the cell theory and life in general, what are some of the fundamental characteristics of life. Based on their responses I will guide the discussion in a way that the students will be able to come up with the characteristics of life.
Assessment Assessments for this lesson will come from their responses to the warm up question, participation in the discussions and their written reaction to the story.
Homework Their homework will be for them to write 2-3 paragraphs addressing the question “Is the cell alive?” Why or why not, based on the characteristics of life we came up with.
Unit: The Cell
Title: Cell Theory/Characteristics of Life.
Lesson Overview
This lesson will address the cell theory that was introduced in lesson 2 in more detail. It will also go into the characteristics of life.
Objectives
Materials
Links to Resources
- Cell slideshow
- Is Sammy Alive>
Safety IssuesInstruction
Opening
There will be a slideshow of various cells playing on the screen and a question on the board, “Define what it means to be alive” I will ask them to take 5-10 min to write a response to this question. At this point I will take attendance and collect homework. I will then collect their responses and ask them some things they came up with. This warm up exercise is designed to get them thinking about the topic and also to activate prior knowledge of what they know of what is alive. Answers will be recorded on the board. I will ask them about the cell theory and what are the parts that were discussed in the video yesterday. I will write it on the board and ask how this theory pertains to life. The discussion will proceed to address what determines if something is alive or not? At what point is something not alive anymore? Again, responses will be written on the board.
Learning Activities
The students will pair off and each be given a copy of the short story “Is Sammy Alive”. They will be instructed to read the story and discuss with their partner if they think Sammy is alive at the end of the story. If they think he is, explain. If they feel he is not alive anymore, explain why and where in the story was Sammy no longer living and why. Once they have discussed the story whether or not they agree with each other they will write up what they think and why. This will be collected.
Closing
After the students have finished up with this activity I will ask each group to briefly discuss their findings and their reasoning. I will then ask them based on what they have learned about the cell, what they know about the cell theory and life in general, what are some of the fundamental characteristics of life. Based on their responses I will guide the discussion in a way that the students will be able to come up with the characteristics of life.
Assessment
Assessments for this lesson will come from their responses to the warm up question, participation in the discussions and their written reaction to the story.
Homework
Their homework will be for them to write 2-3 paragraphs addressing the question “Is the cell alive?” Why or why not, based on the characteristics of life we came up with.
Additional Notes